


On the Square

by Pearl_Pilots_In_Chains



Series: Of Tears and Ash [15]
Category: Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Genre: Gen, Plotting, world building
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:22:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25681261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pearl_Pilots_In_Chains/pseuds/Pearl_Pilots_In_Chains
Summary: Autolycus waits for his adversary to make an appearance.
Series: Of Tears and Ash [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1050806
Kudos: 8





	On the Square

**Author's Note:**

> Timeline-wise, this occurs the day after "Trifle Not With Royal Thieves."

Dusk settled in gently over the waterfront, coasting slowly down to meet the surface of the waves, their blue hue giving way to a night-impenetrable darkness, until the sky and the sea were both quite alike in visual character.What little natural light remained was departing quite rapidly now, taking its leave of the town and its inhabitants without any manner of farewell.The only illumination left to break through the night which gathered about the plaza came from the braziers which were fixed here and there outside of establishments still active at this hour.Given that this was the portion of town near the docks, there were a fair number of businesses which fell into this category, the majority of which were taverns or bars of one form or another, catering to the crowd of merchants and sailors who were on shore for a time before they set off to the open waters once again.

There was an untamed quality to this part of town, given the vast variability of the individuals who might be found in it.There was always some manner of activity going on, some of which was above-board enough, so to speak, while another significant portion of the local undertakings skewed a bit more toward the side of illegality.The strength of the law always seemed to be somewhat lax in this district, Autolycus found, a likely cause for this fact being that the administrators and bureaucrats who ran the city and its guard were happy enough to turn a blind enough to the questionably ventures which were carried out in the waterfront district, as long as they reaped some of the rewards from said ventures.From Autolycus’s experience, he knew quite well that corruption was as rife in the city as the reek of sheep was in a pasture.Which was to say that it was virtually ubiquitous, a fixture of the local society recognized as commonplace, for better or worse, depending on an individual’s perception.As far as Autolycus was concerned, the rampant malfeasance which went on behind closed doors was generally to his benefit, even if it was indirectly.With so many schemes and scandals happening constantly and simultaneously, it was easy for him to mingle in with the lot, as it were, and do what he needed to do.

Given the nature of the waterfront district, the square was still corpulent with commotion, even at this time in the evening.Thus, it was altogether easy for Autolycus to find a spot somewhere along the edge of the plaza where he could loiter without attracting any great amount of attention, and observe the bustle of the square.He settled the wall of a shop which was closed for the night, lowering himself down and leaning up against it, making his body as inconspicuous as possible.With his cloak drawn about him, and a hood over his face, he looked more like a mass of cloth, perhaps even a pile of rags, than a human.An individual such as himself was quite easy to overlook in the square.After all, there were of other people hanging about in various locations, their business uncertain.Perhaps they too were waiting to meet someone for reasons of their own, or perhaps their motivations had a more sinister tint to them.It was impossible to provide a definite decree concerning any of those assembled in the square, or passing through it, for that matter, without possessing intimate knowledge of their situation, and a direct window into the workings of their mind, things which were clearly impossible for any ordinary individual to come by.

Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that he was powerless to ascertain the true causes behind their presence in the square on this particular evening, Autolycus observed the other occupants of the square as they arrived and departed, constructing what he felt to be a plausible explanation for the showing of each individual on whom his gaze happened to fall by one path or another.All the while, he kept his eyes alert and his mind focused, scanning new arrivals to the square for the object of his intentions, his purpose for visiting the square himself still holding firm in the front of his mind.

For a time, Autolycus began to suspect that his quarry might not make an appearance after all.It was possible, though he personally deemed it unlikely, that the individual for whom he waited had learned of the failure of the thugs whom he hired to eliminate the thief, and had decided to vacate the city post-haste.However, another option, one which Autolycus felt was rather more believable, was that the man he knew as Anaxagoras (he still strongly doubted this was the man’s true name, though he had no proof to support this conviction) had never intended to meet with the ruffians he hired after all, either because he didn’t wish to pay them what was likely the remainder of what he owed (a rather foolish thing to do, considering it was a fantastic way to gain enemies and possibly get murdered), or because Anaxagoras never expected the intended assassins to succeed in the first place.While this latter hypothesis seemed, to Autolycus’s mind, to be the most logical of the ones which he conceived, he also felt it was out of character for Anaxagoras.The man’s ego was too substantial, from Autolycus’s observations, to allow him to fathom, for even a moment, that the assassins whom he hired would be unable to carry out the task for which he recruited them.

Though this period of uncertainty lasted for a good five minutes or so, Autolycus’s suspicions regarding the considerably size of Anaxagoras’s ego were at last proven correct, when the man finally appeared in the plaza, strolling in confidently from a side street.Autolycus immediately devoted his attention solely to his target, watching the man’s movements and mannerisms closely.

Anaxagoras first scanned over the crowd within the plaza, looking for the men with whom he was supposed to be meeting.When he failed to find them after a minute or two of visual scrutiny, he resolved to wait himself, perhaps assuming that the ruffians were running late.Autolycus watched curiously as the man took a seat along the edge of one of the fountains in the square.

Anaxagoras’s patience wore thin after the length of several minutes, by Autolycus’s estimate.When this occurred, he rose from his spot along the fount and began to pace back and forth in a tight loop.His face, which had at first displayed a fair amount of self-assured swagger, was now twisted into a revolting visage of irritation.Autolycus found that the palpable tension in the other man’s motion was rather unpleasant to observe, as it had a vaguely nauseating quality to it.Then again, it was possible that this was merely a sensation brought on by Anaxagoras’s overarching, unsavory character.This was a theory which Autolycus admitted held a great deal of credibility in his eyes.There was no one factor which he could pinpoint that conveyed how unpleasant of an individual Anaxagoras was.Rather, it was a combination of manifold elements, mixing together to form a whole which inspired disgust to differing degrees.

After a minute or two of pacing, it was clear that Anaxagoras had had enough.It should never be said that he equanimous of individuals.His frustration was painted clearly across his face, and he made no attempt to wipe it off.Autolycus garnered a not-insignificant amount of satisfaction from the observation that he had put his former client in a foul mood.There was something quite pleasing about it.Of course, his work was most certainly not done yet.The night was far too young to waste it.

Anaxagoras, seemingly coming to a decision, set off back in the direction of the street from which he had entered the square.Autolycus pushed himself to his feet, and set off after his target, maintaining a steady distance between them.Anaxagoras, for his part, seemed altogether oblivious to the fact that he was being followed.Autolycus noted, as he headed down the street after the other man, that he was moving rather rapidly, as if he had suddenly come to the realization that there was some pressing matter which required his immediate attention.Autolycus set his speed to one which would allow him to keep up with Anaxagoras, without drawing so close that the other man might notice his presence.

The night grew thicker as Anaxagoras strode through the streets, making no pretense of calm or composure any longer.He wove through the thoroughfares of the city, the intensity of his movements revealing that he must have an objective within his mind.Autolycus trailed along, his disposition considerably less severe, staying to the deep shadows along the path and circumventing the circles of light which emanated from the occasional torch or brazier lit at some junction or outside some eatery.

As Anaxagoras’s journey continued, Autolycus took careful note of the portions of town through which they were passing.Based on Anaxagoras’s route, Autolycus surmised that the other man’s goal was somewhere in the mercantile district near the western gate to the city.This supposition was eventually proven to be true, as Anaxagoras entered this area.Finally, after a walk which Autolycus approximated to have lasted the better part of an hour, Anaxagoras arrived at his destination.

Autolycus watched as the other man disappeared into the inn.It was one of the finest establishments of that sort in the city.Its usual guests were richer merchants and businessfolk conducting some manner of trade in the city.Autolycus was well aware that the rooms within this particular inn were not cheap, to say the least.If this was where Anaxagoras was staying, it was clear that he must either be a wealthy man himself, or possess the backing of an individual or group with not inconsiderable funds.Autolycus personally thought the latter possibility was the more probable one.He reached up and stroked his goatee thoughtfully as the door closed behind his quarry.It appeared that the situation had gotten a bit more interesting.He felt as though further investigation was in order.

**Author's Note:**

> This is another one of my HTLJ fics from 2018 (set in my "Of Tears and Ash" AU) that I never posted, but decided I might as well, considering the time I put into them. Once again, since I'm no longer really in the fandom, I'm backdating this to when I wrote it, so no one thinks I'm suddenly back into HTLJ.


End file.
